For more than a year, top officials within the New York state health department refused to acknowledge or share the recommendations of a patient-safety advisory committee that was created 12 years ago under a mandate designed to stem hospital errors, publicize doctors' practice histories and prevent medical deaths, according to key members of the committee. State officials deny that assertion. Still, internal agency records obtained by the Times Union raise questions about whether state officials declined to act on a 2011 report that was submitted in December 2010 by a consortium of physicians and pharmacists who, for more than a decade, have made recommendations for improving patient safety.